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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26454931">somewhere only we know</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/astomnus/pseuds/astomnus'>astomnus</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Sun Fraeti [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Original Work</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Languages and Linguistics, Old Gods, Post-Apocalypse, Road Trips, Tags May Change, no one has the braincell</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 07:00:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,017</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26454931</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/astomnus/pseuds/astomnus</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Occasionally, there comes a day in everyone's life where it's just practical to go on a road trip.</p><p>Apparently, that day is today.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Halcyon &amp; Aubade</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Sun Fraeti [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1920277</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. don't stay here</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/LotusLeaf/gifts">LotusLeaf</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>god said "no roadtrip." i say "yes roadtrip."</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It’s been a very, very long time since cars were commonplace.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Nowadays, most walk, or fix up old bikes to use, or ride horses. For those truly traveling long distances, and who must carry lots of supplies, a horse and wagon are extremely useful. Cars just… didn’t exist anymore. And those that did exist were locked away somewhere secure. Used only for those in power during the most dire of situations.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Unfortunately for said people in power, two very specific individuals had just been introduced to the concept of a “road trip” and were determined to have one.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did you get everything?” Aubade whispered. The darkness shrouded their form, the only thing visible was the shining of their eyes, vaguely luminescent in the pitch-darkness. Neither of them really knew how that came to be, but it didn’t matter much. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Silently, Halcyon patted their many packs. “I think so.” Didn’t matter much anyway, now that they were here. No turning back now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As quietly as they could, the two shimmied up the giant chain-link fence, easily swinging up and over the barbed wire at the top. They crept through the dark compound, dried grass brushing against their pants. The darkness of the new moon always left everyone on edge, and so they weren’t surprised to find the compound dark and empty.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still. Best to get in and get out before any alarms were set off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They rounded a corner and came across what they were here for. Rows upon rows of shiny metal cars, paint chipping and peeling but still perfectly functional. The perfect ones were kept inside, under lock and key, but these would do.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kaen jurekmae?” Halcyon whispered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aubade paused, pointing at a small green car slightly separate from the rest of them. “You figure out how to make it start, I’ll unlock the gate.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They nodded, each flitting away to begin their seperate tasks. With deft fingers, Aubade popped the side of the ID scanner off, tilting their head at the colorful array of wires tangled inside. Maybe, in another life, in another time, they might’ve pulled a fancy electronic disabler out of their back pocket, or maybe with a vast array of knowledge on how keycard scanners work, they might’ve snapped off the exact wire that held the entire thing together, disabling it completely.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Unfortunately, Aubade was neither a hacker nor a cyberpunk rebel. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Instead, they waited until they heard the roar of the engine behind them, then yanked their favorite metal pipe out of their bag and bashed the scanner in until it stopped screaming. Instantly, an alarm began blaring from somewhere in the distance.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nis </span>
  <em>
    <span>lonaesth!” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Halcyon yelled, the car squealing to a stop besides them. Breathless with excitement, Aubade hauled the heavy metal gate open, hopping into the passenger seat next to them. “That is </span>
  <em>
    <span>not </span>
  </em>
  <span>what it means to ‘have things handled’!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Paeknis!” Aubade shouted, glancing back at the still-dark compound. “Doesn’t matter now, just </span>
  <em>
    <span>drive!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>And with the screeching of tires, the two shot off into the moonless night.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. undone in sorrow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Alright, so what’s the plan?” Aubade asked, rummaging through the car as they sped down the abandoned, overgrown highway. Their hands met metal where there shouldn’t have been any, and with a triumphant flourish they yanked it out from under the seat, flinging the tracker out the open window into the dark night. “What’d the uh…. the device thing-y say we should do on one of these?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aubade’ri, I appreciate your confidence in me, but this is my first time behind the wheel and I’m pretty sure that if I look away from the road for one second we </span>
  <em>
    <span>will </span>
  </em>
  <span>go racing headfirst into a building.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright, whatever.” Aubade muttered, with a quiet “diskun’ilik” thrown in there for good measure. They rummaged through the bags at their feet, searching for their most treasured item. While they were at it, they pulled out a small leather bag filled with garlic oil cashews, and wrapped their favorite soft blanket around themselves. Finally, with a triumphant gasp, they pulled out the small phone, plugging it into the dash. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They still didn’t really know how this worked. It took forever to try and figure out what the strange squiggles on the screen were saying, and it took even longer to get used to the too-bright light. With a few hesitant taps, they pulled up a page titled “The Best West Coast Road Trips.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Humming quietly to themselves, they struggled to read the tiny unfamiliar letters. “What the fuck is a restaurant?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You think I know? Bitch, I’ll kill you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They shut the phone off, dropping it into the center console. “Cool. Guess we’re winging it. Guess we’ll stop anywhere that looks cool.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Beyond the glass window, the landscape flashed by. The familiar rolling hills of chaparral were foreboding and dark underneath the moonless sky, and Aubade shivered, infinitely glad that they were in this tiny moving shelter instead of out there in the unknown. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually, when the moon would’ve been halfway towards the horizon, the two stopped at a tiny outcrop looking over a vast valley to switch spots. As soon as Halcyon hit the passenger seat they wrapped themselves in Aubade’s blanket, slumping against the car door. Aubade had never actually driven a car before, but all the videos had looked fairly simple and there was no traffic to speak of so the process seemed fairly straight forward. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They let themselves go, staring out the dark window ahead while their hands gripped the wheel, the soft snores of Halcyon acting as background noise for the long day ahead.</span>
</p><p><br/>
<br/>
</p><p>
  <span>When the sun rose, light pale against the horizon, Halcyon awoke again and the two stopped for breakfast on an outcrop overlooking the ocean. Legs dangling off the edge, they passed dried salmon and fruits between themselves, sipping on bottles of peach and lemon kombucha.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Already the landscape had changed, the dried grasses and sagebrush bushes replaced by unfamiliar trees and too-green foliage. The air felt different here, colder. More humid.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Halcyon pulled a map from their pack, the two leaning over it. “I think we’re somewhere around here,” They said, pointing at a space halfway up the homemade map, landscape filled in with bright green ink. “So if we want, we can head back down and explore the desert a bit, then head back up towards the north?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We can stop at these numaetalo as well,” Aubade spoke around their mouthful of dried strawberries, pointing at two black dots in the desert. “Stop, restock food, sleep in a bed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think there’s a commune somewhere up here,” Halcyon tapped the top half of the map, somewhere in the middle of a dark green forest. “Maybe that can be our end goal?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aubade hummed, flopping back onto the grass. They breathed out a sigh, closing their eyes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They felt queasy and exhausted after their all-nighter, but the grass was cold against the back of their neck and the sunlight shone down on them, already warming up their feverish skin. “You’re driving next,” They sighed. “That was rough.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Something slammed into their stomach and they choked, surprised. Halcyon grinned at them, sprawled across their stomach like a lanky cat. “Seems fair to me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Surprisingly enough, the highways and freeways that crisscrossed the West Coast were not barren of all life.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sure, they weren’t at all as pristine as they once had been. Time had worn away the back asphalt until it was a cracked, sun-bleached gray. Some stretches were entirely unusable, water flooding to cover what had once been bridges, others lost to vast stretches of desert. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But like how, in ancient times, people flocked to rivers, people in the Now flocked to those old highways. Even though their use wasn’t as commonplace as it once was, it was still much easier to travel on those long, ancient bones than it was to hike through miles and miles of overgrown wasteland. Access to the highways meant access to the traders, as well as the fuerñ’ima, those who spent their entire lives pacing up and down these old paths like a chained dog searching for enlightenment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aubade didn’t know if they and Halcyon were fuerñ’ima, but they certainly acted like they might be.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was an old store on the side of the highway. At one point in time, it might’ve been painted a brilliant shade of red, but like most things in the desert, that color had been lost over time. A small group of families lived in and around the building, offering things to trade. While Halcyon bartered with the old woman for some snacks and things for the road, Aubade smiled and waved at a cluster of children who stared at the two travelers and their stolen car.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pishnis jaeldin hinn i’shein i’she?” They called out, cupping a hand to their mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aubade was in the middle of explaining the rules— an array of circles drawn in the dirt surrounding them and the kids, a handful of pebbles in their hand— when Halcyon finally re-emerged from the building, a jar of candied orange peels in hand. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They pass something to Aubade, frozen and sweet, and they smile up at them in thanks. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually the adults ask them to leave, politely, of course, but it’s been a couple of hours and the game has evolved to become a chaotic beast, and at least one kid has gotten a bloody nose and it’s probably time for them to head out again, anyway. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do you think the people in the Before did?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They had figured out how to connect their strange phone to the even stranger car, and now loud music plays through the crackly speakers. Neither of them know how to fix it, and there’s an eerie sense of nostalgia for a time neither of them know that accompanies the sound.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Halcyon’s driving again, single braid hanging down while they lounge in the driver’s seat like an especially weird cat. They shrug. “I dunno, we get a pretty good picture from our phone, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, but that’s not… </span>
  <em>
    <span>our </span>
  </em>
  <span>dimension. It’s just something that might’ve been.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The car is silent for a moment, the hot desert air blowing through the open windows, a poor substitute for their broken air conditioning. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bet they didn’t have to deal with weird cryptids and old gods in the middle of the desert.” Halcyon finally replies, staring up at a dark spot in the otherwise blue sky. “They had to deal with what, I don’t know, traffic?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Imagine sitting in the same spot in the same car for several hours.” Halcyon shook their head. “Pathetic.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Neither of them paid any attention to the strange entity floating miles above the desert, incomprehensible tendrils whipping through the sky. Sometimes it was better to just leave those kinds of things alone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At least they weren’t sitting in traffic.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. dog nightmare</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>There is an abandoned city in the middle of the desert.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That in itself is not unusual.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hundreds of abandoned cities are scattered across the West Coast, monuments to a time that might have been. Now they are nothing more than concrete bones, with the odd survivor seeking shelter within their midst. Nearly everything that could’ve been scavenged has already been found.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But in this city, there is a very particular dog.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There are lots of dogs. The companions of humanity now roam around the abandoned cities and settlements in the thousands, making their home in the absence of all. And this dog is no different. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dog is dark, with midnight-black fur, and a hint of a graying muzzle. She isn’t ancient yet, but scavenging and hunting is tough when you have so many competitors, and it’s starting to show. Maybe that’s why, when a strange beast lumbers into the city, she is the only dog who doesn’t run.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Instead, she watches as the strange beast crawls to a halt, two humans clambering out of its gut. They shout at each other in raised voices, in a mixture of this world’s language and a language that hasn’t been used in generations. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dog doesn’t know this, but she watches, regardless.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>One of them notices her and they fall silent, watching her as intently as she watches them. The shorter one whistles at her, patting their thigh in a futile attempt to get her to come closer, while the taller one rummages around in their pack and pulls out a handful of something that smells amazing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And yet she doesn’t move, watching as the humans sigh and turn away to wander through the city. Hesitating slightly, she follows at a distance, nails clicking against the ancient asphalt.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The humans are searching for something. Glancing around at the buildings, poking their heads into alleyways. She doesn’t know what they’re looking for. Food? Water? She knows where those things are. Something to kill the beast they were trapped in— or more terrifyingly, something to bring it back to life? She doesn’t know. She can see the glimmer of eyes watching the trio from the darkness, and knows that only most of them are alive.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still she trails behind the pack of humans, curiosity and something else driving her forwards, eying the shapes in the shadows warily.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually the humans stop, talking amongst themselves. They seem confused, lost, squabbling like a pair of puppies. The dog wags her tail uncertainly, watching as something pretending to be a dog stares unblinkingly at the two humans from a building that might’ve once been a store.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She growls at it, low and deep, and the two humans fall silent to stare at her. The thing winks, and her hackles raise, and she knows she cannot stay here.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wheeling around, the dog trots out of the maze of alleyways, the two lost humans trailing behind her like two ghosts. They remind her of the memory of her puppies, small and soft things, too quiet for their own good, taken from this world by the Mother Dog far too soon. No matter, she won’t fail this time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sunlight feels good against her dark fur as they step out of the oppressive shadows and back into the heat of the desert sun.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Quietly, the taller human calls out again, holding out an offering of sweet-smelling dried meat. The dog creeps forward, delicately taking the offering.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The smaller human bares their teeth, clapping the taller one on the back. Tall responds by leaping at them, tussling like two month old puppies.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sitting back on her haunches, the dog surveys her new puppies.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She wishes she could speak to them, to ask them why they have come to this accursed city, where even good dogs fall prey to the things in the dark. But she cannot, can only watch as her new puppies tussel and play in the sunlight. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually they collapse on one another, panting heavily. Small bares their teeth at the dog. "Miaet?" They say, asking something more in a lilting tone, and the dog tilts her head in response.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The humans rise, calling for her as they head off into the city again. She follows.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tall stiffens, shouting something in excitement and pointing at a worn sign. Small answers in a similar tone and they dash off, and the dog bolts after them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They stop in front of a worn stone building, with a door that still blinks a red light. For a moment the humans glance over the door, pulling on it, then Small shrugs and slams a metal pipe into the glass.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It shatters, and the humans hop through the window.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She lets them go. She has no desire to be caught indoors, weak and defenseless, with nowhere to turn.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Instead she lets the hot desert sun warm her fur, soothing the ever-present ache in her bones. She feels the prickle of eyes from somewhere in the shadows, but despite the fear in her chest, she stays put.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A dog survives by being hard to find, and right now she is breaking all the rules.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally the humans clamber back out of the building, holding bright red containers that smell like sickness and anger and fire. She follows along now as they head back to that shiny green beast, ignoring the scent of danger that the desert wind brings.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The shadows of the buildings swirl and coalesce, dog-like shadows glaring at them with sun-drowned eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Spirits of those who were meant to pass.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The city never lets things go.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Small crouches down next to the beast, uncapping the container of sickness and pressing it into a wound in the beast side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A shadow steps forward, ever-silent.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It's sudden and swift.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dog takes her eyes off the shadows for only an instant, glancing at Small. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>And then the shadows are upon them, rushing in like a perfectly black tidal wave, disrupted only by the stars of their eyes. Tall yells out, beating one back with a strange stick tied to a rock, while the dog sinks her teeth into the not-flesh of the nearest one.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Small shouts back, and in the frozen second when a shadow flips the dog over, she can see that their hands are trembling.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Before the shadow can tear her apart, inky teeth firm against her throat, Tall is upon it, bringing the club down onto the shadow's head with a sickly squelching noise. They beat down on it again and again, howling something in triumph.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dog leaps to her paws, shaking out her fur. She lunges at one that gets too close to Tall, hackles raised and teeth flashing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Nothing was going to steal her puppies away. Not this time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Small shouts suddenly, high-pitched and excited. They fling themselves into the beast, and Tall scoops up the dog, ignoring her panicked whines and struggling. The beast comes to life with a furious roar and the shadows scatter, and the dog watches in terrified amusement as the shadows are mowed down by the beast’s screeching limbs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Idly, Tall’s hand reaches behind her ears, scratching idly at an itch.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And the dog leaves the city behind.</span>
</p>
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